Thailand and Cambodia agree to deploy ceasefire monitors

Thailand and Cambodia agreed on Thursday to establish interim observer teams to monitor a fragile ceasefire that ended five days of deadly armed border clashes, even as the fate of 18 Cambodian soldiers captured by Thailand remains unresolved.

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The first meeting of the General Border Committee concluded after four days of talks in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, with a focus on ensuring the full implementation of the ceasefire brokered by Malaysia on July 28.

Dozens of people were killed and over 260,000 displaced on both sides of the Thai-Cambodian border, when fighting began after a land mine explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers.

According to a joint statement from the committee, each country will set up its own interim observer team comprising defence officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and coordinated by the bloc’s annual chair Malaysia, pending the deployment of a formal ASEAN observer mission.

The interim teams will operate within their respective borders and work closely with local military authorities.